Charms Strike The Sight
by ArtsyBVB
Summary: Mika is a genin about to participate in the Chunin exams with his team and the rest of the Rookie 9! OC/OC yaoi, but not a major part of the story.
1. Ice Buckets

_"Charms strike the sight, but merit wins the soul."_ Alexander Pope, _The Rape of The Lock_

* * *

"They say that mermaids are the souls of women who were thrown off of boats by sailors. As women on ship were considered bad luck, stowaway women were tied to a weight, and thrown overboard to ensure safe travel. These women drowned, and their spirits remained chained to the weight as their body. They suffered the same way as their living counterpart, until they learned to breath the salt water, and swim with their legs conjoined at the weight. The mermaids would swim to rocky shores, and sing. They would sing in their gravelly, enchanting voices, luring the evil sailors who had doomed them to a fate as tragic as their own."

I rolled my eyes. My friend Chiacy was telling another scary story. We were outside preparing with our other teammate the night before the Chunin exams. At the moment, we were taking a break, and just stretching each other out. Chiacy was short, with long-ish black hair and green eyes. She had an angular face and small hands. She wore a long, blue, bell sleeved shirt and her forehead protector as a hair-tie, to keep hair out of her face. She also wore black shorts, fishnet pants, and navy colored shoes. Don't let her size fool you, though. Her ninjutsu is on point. The only other genin better at ninjutsu is Sasuke, but he's an Uchiha.

"Whoa," I said to Chiacy. "You're really into this freaky occult stuff, aren't you?"

"Eh, I guess. Where is Tai? Shouldn't he be here by now?"

"I'm not sure. Maybe he's getting drinks? We left them by the table."

Tai is the third member of our squad. He's a member of the Kimitsu clan. They're wicked genjutsu users, and their Kekkei Genkai actually allows them to _feel _the genjutsu of others. Not only that, but their heavy chakra sensitivity allows them to track others really well. It's almost as if they can smell them. Most of our plans revolve around his ability to "see" with his sensory abilities, so we're able to ambush effectively. Tai is really strong and great at Taijutsu, to boot.

"I think you're right," Chiacy said. She looked at me strangely. "You know, Mika, you look thirteen, but I don't think your appearance is ever going to age you past thirteen."

_Um, was that a compliment? _"Thanks, Chiacy... I guess."

She was probably right. I had extremely tanned skin and short black hair that was cropped at my ears. I wore a short sleeved shirt that was somewhat form fitting, but loose enough to work in, and a fishnet undershirt that went to my forearms. I had dark brown, almost black eyes, and a cherubic face, _I guess_. I don't know why, but apparently it looked pretty baby-like. I wore a pair of blue pants with white ankle wrapping, and black shoes. I had long legs and arms. I was pretty much for locomotion. That was my talent, I guess. Movement. I could run, swim, jump, climb, as well, if not better than anyone else. I could out sprint anybody, and only few people could touch my speed in long runs, unless they were trained for that sort of thing, which I wasn't, until recently. I went to our sensei, Goka Tsukisho, who gave me ankle and arm weights, and a parachute. He then made me race him until I was able to keep his pace while running.

A little crazy, but that's the way our teacher was.

"Hey! I've got our drinks! After this, we'll continue!" That was Tai. He handed us each a bottle of water, and kept one for himself. He was tall and well built. He had short, spiky brown hair and brown eyes. He had an angular jaw and tan skin. He wore a grey V-neck T-shirt and black shorts. He also wore black combat boots and a coin with a leather strap laced through it to be a necklace.

"I've been thinking," Chiacy said. "Maybe we should try the ice bucket after this instead of any actual training. To loosen our muscles, y'know?"

The "ice bucket" was the bane of my existence. You got in the bucket, as it was filled with cold water and ice. Then, you stayed inside of it for quite some time, because it's supposed to help you relax and chill your body, in more ways than one.

"Sure," Tai said. "I don't think we should do much either." He sat down in the grass of the training field next to us. It was beginning to get dark.

"So, any plans for tomorrow? Like, how are we gonna run this? The first stage is going to be an academic exam, or so I've heard. I know we'll all pass that."

"Definitely," I said. Behind Sakura, Sasuke, and Ino, we were the next top three in grades at the Academy.

"I'm not sure," Chiacy said. "Lately, Ino has been talking about how she might use her jutsu to put the incorrect answers in some student's heads."

"Don't worry about her," I told her. "Ino's cool with me, and I know for a fact she wouldn't harass other Konoha-nin. Maybe, just maybe, some others, like Suna or Kisa, but she would never touch a Konohagakure shinobi."

She nodded. "Well, I don't think there's much left to do besides the ice bucket. Let's get to it, men!"

Tai began preparing the ice bucket with me. It was a well-known fact that we were kind of a "thing."

"So, babe," He said to me. "You ready?"

I nodded. "I'll definitely be able to outspeed anybody in fights. And if it's a team battle, you can shut down their genjutsu, and Chiacy can blast them with ninjutsu. In the meantime, I keep them distracted with bombs and other defensive weapons."

I held up my scrolls. I kept them in my back pockets, but they were always there in case we needed them. They held a bunch of defensive tools, and my prized weapon. It was a long steel cord, with shuriken and kunai along the length, save for the handle. I used it to keep our enemies out of range while we handled them. Tai was our eyes, Chiacy our weapon, and I was our body. We worked in conjunction to handle most of our foes, which hasn't been much, save for a few bandits.

The only thing that's able to handle us easily is a ranged foe. We haven't been able to figure out how to handle them. I can handle ranged weapons easily, as my Earth Release jutsu let me construct walls and other defensive structures. But, ninjutsu is a problem. As we haven't been able to deflect them, we're relying on our ability to move. Chiacy is the definition of a glass cannon, as well. When she casts jutsu, she does it great. But when she needs to take a hit, she's out. We've been bulking her up and she's gotten better, but Chiacy is still physically weak when it comes to Taijutsu. She needs range desperately.

Tai noticed the worry on my face as I silently analyzed our team. "Don't worry," he told me. "We're going to come out of this on top." He smiled. I did, too. "You're right."

Chiacy walked over as we were finishing the ice bucket of death. "Ready?" We all prepared to climb in.

"One, two, three!"

* * *

**A/N: I know, there's yaoi in here, blah blah. It's going to be a minor part of the story, it just happened to be there.**

**So this was my first chapter of my first fic! *throws confetti* So I would LOVE feedback, please! I would love to know what I should do better! And I'm sorry this chapter was so short, it was only an introduction chapter. It takes place in the original, pre-shippuden series. This is happening the day before the Chunin exams, in which they are participating.**


	2. The Chunin Exam

Our first trial was quite eventful, for a written exam.

Beforehand, a lot of people left. They were too scared to take the exam. No Konoha genin left, but a lot of other genin did. I sat next to Tai and a stranger, towards the back.

"I'm _so _nervous!" I told him. He nodded.

"It doesn't matter whether or not you're nervous, you'll pass the exam for sure." Tai sat next to Chiacy. I heard them whispering, until a loud voice boomed from the front of the screen.

"I am Ibiki Morino. I am also the proctor of this leg of the exam. There will be various sentinels around to prevent cheating. You are about to take a difficult exam that few of you will pass. Those of you that do will proceed to the next stage. Keep in mind, that if you are caught cheating, you will be removed from the exam."

I smirked. I wanted to put on a confident air. _Caught cheating... _I thought. _So we're allowed to cheat, but we cannot get _caught.

I nudged Tai. I needed to hurry and tell him before the exam was started.

"Tai. We're allowed to cheat!" He looked at me like I had grown two heads. He raised one of his thin brown eyebrows, and lowered the other.

"No we aren't, Mika. He just said that if we're caught cheatin-"

"Exactly! _Caught_ cheating! He's encouraging us to, but telling us not to get caught! So copy off of Chiacy and make it visible so I can see! Make sure you tell her!"

Tai turned to tell her, as Ibiki began talking again.

"Take out your materials for the exam and get ready." Tai quickly turned back around to me and told me she figured it out too. I nodded.

"The exam begins in three.. Two.. One."

"You may begin! The first question: Name the different nature releases of ninjutsu." Good. An easy one that I don't need to cheat for.

_Fire.. Water.. Earth.._

"Second: What is the name of the second seal used in the Fireball Jutsu?" _Crap.. I need to copy for this one, _I thought.

I peeked over, to see a sentinel staring right at me. I stared it dead in the eyes, and then looked down on my paper. I marked the question, so I could copy it later. The rest of the exam went in a similar way to this, until the last one. By then, the cold room was getting to me. My nerves were shot and I couldn't stop shaking. I felt like I was acting like the girliest guy in existence. _Shit.._

Tai put a hand on my leg and shot me a look telling me to calm down. I nodded. Finally, Ibiki gave us the ninth question.

"Now, there is something very important that you must hear before I give you your final question. This final question _will _decide whether or not you pass your exam. If you do not get this question right, then you will be failed permanently. You will remain a genin... Forever!" I shot a scared look at Tai and Chiacy. They nodded back. Chiacy gave me a smile.

"However, you may leave. If you leave, you, along with your team, will be failed, but only for _this _exam. You will be allowed to try for chunin level, but next year. You have 2 minutes to decide. No speaking."

My mind was racing, like a runaway slave. _What if I pass and my team fails? Or my team passes, but _I _fail? _My apprehension lay heavy as I weighed my options.

_We're smart enough. We can always cheat. And besides, this question will probably only be slightly more difficult than the others, which have mostly been simple. We can do this. Besides, why would I just think that there's always a chance next year? It won't be like that in the real world._

Naruto had an outburst. Nuff said.

I turned and nodded back at my team, a determined expression on my face. After the two excruciatingly long minutes, Ibiki spoke to us again, in his booming voice. "Anybody willing to leave may exit through that door." He motioned to the door we entered from.

Quite a few people left. I saw many genin have a look of guilt as they left, damning the rest of their squad to try again next year. I pitied them, somewhat. Why would you be afraid like that? As a shinobi, you are to own up to your fears and face them, no matter the possible outcome, right? Suddenly, I felt more confident.

Ibiki looked at who was left, long and hard. "You're in for a tough time," He said. "But you all have passed."

Cue the collective gasp of everybody.

"But, why?" A girl from Kiri asked him.

"The ability to be courageous and survive any hardship… These are the abilities needed to become a chunin captain. Those who can't put their destinies on the line… who cling to the uncertain future of "there's always next year" and walk away from their chance… those pieces of trash who can only make such cowardly choices do not deserve to become chunin! I applaud all of you for your bravery in this exam. It has been entirely mental, from the beginning. You were told not to get caught cheating. That should have been an obvious hint. You were supposed to cheat, while avoiding being found out. You were not. Congratulations, but do not get cocky. Information is extremely vital to your advancement in the ninja world. And whoever knows information can hurt you." He took off his cap, showing us holes and scars all across his head.

"You must be able to endure any torture that is used upon you. Shinobi dedicate their lives to their information, and you should as well. Otherwise, you do not deserve to be."

Then a window broke and a scantily dressed woman appeared. She had purplish-black hair and a long overcoat.

"Anko Mitarasihi, at your service!"

* * *

"So," I said to her. "You're expecting us to go in _there_, to fight other enemies for a scroll, and survive? For five days?"

Anko smiled a sadistic smile. "That is exactly what I'm telling you." She licked her lips, and fingered a kunai, with the same look she had when she cut Naruto's cheek. I stood between Tai and Chiacy.

"This is crazy," I said to them.

"Definitely," Tai agreed with me.

"We need a plan, boys! We need to look at who we could pick off from this group. Who can we fight and win against?"

We examined the group of genin around us. "Well," Tai started. "There's always team seven..."

I elbowed him harshly. "No! We shouldn't sabotage our own village! I was thinking, how about those Suna-nin? Not the creepy redheaded one's team, but the team to the left of team seven." I pointed at a trio of weak-looking Suna-nin, about our age.

"Hm," Chiacy said. "From the looks of it, they'll be in entering to gates away from us. They're not too far."

"We could take 'em, no sweat!" Tai said.

"Alright!" Anko said. Line up at your gates! You may go when the gates open!"

We lined up at our gate, outside of the forest.

"Ready, babe?" I said to Tai.

"Yes, sir!" Chiacy punched me lightly on the arm. "C'mon, Mika! Focus!"

The gates opened, and we charged.


End file.
